Welcome to the Tuva Republic

Famed for its vibrant culture around the world, the region remains among the most disconnected inside Russia.

By Bradley Jardine and Matthew Kupfer for The Diplomat

October 18, 2016

Located in the deep south of Siberia, the Tuva Republic is one of Russia’s most isolated and culturally unique regions. Nominally independent between the two world wars, Tuva was one of the last territories added to the Soviet Union. Today, Tuva is a land of contradictions: famed for its throat singing and shamanism around the world, the region remains among the most disconnected inside Russia. No railroad line reaches the republic, and flights to Kyzyl, Tuva’s capital, are few and far between. The quickest way in is a five-hour taxi ride through the Sayan mountains and across the vast Siberian steppe.

Perhaps because of its isolation, Tuva remains culturally vibrant. Ethnic Tuvans make up around 80 percent of the population (a rarity in Russia’s “ethnic republics”), and Tuvan cultural practices — folk music, khuresh wrestling, and nomadism — capture the imagination of “friends of Tuva” around the world.

Bradley Jardine is a journalist and researcher from Glasgow, Scotland. He is currently based in Moscow as part of the Alfa Fellowship Program.

Matthew Kupfer is an American journalist focused on the former Soviet Union. He is currently based in Moscow as part of the Alfa Fellowship Program.

Khuresh wrestlers in Kyzyl, the capital of the Tuva Republic, await their turn on the field of battle.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

Those who couldn’t make it to the Khuresh arena enjoy match highlights on Kyzyl’s town square.

Image Credit: Matthew Kupfer

Victorious, a Tuvan wrestler leaves the field.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

Three generations of Tuvans stand alongside one another on the sidelines of the wrestling arena.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A road through Kyzyl’s outskirts leads to the Tuvan State University.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A banner in front of the region’s Federal Tax service encourages Tuvans to “make your native Tuva brighter” by paying their taxes. The children’s shirts read: “I pay taxes.”

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A Tuvan shaman, Dugar-Syuryun Oorzhak, at home on the banks of the Yaneisi River.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A buddhist stupa sits on the steppe outside Kyzyl.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A Soviet built apartment block in Kyzyl.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A tourist from the neighboring Buryatia Republic interacts with a statue of a ram from the Chinese Zodiac.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A statue of early Tuvan statesman, Mongush Buyan-Badyrgy, sits before the planned national cultural museum. The museum’s design mirrors that of a traditional Tuvan hat.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

Traditional Tuvan cuisine is very meat-heavy. The local tea is consumed with milk and salt.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

A lone house sits in isolation on the steppe.

Image Credit: Bradley Jardine

The Tuvan national theater lit up at night. The architecture features local cultural motifs.